Wireless communication modes based on mobile device orientation

ABSTRACT

Wireless communications may be established between mobile computing devices via wireless protocols in asymmetric modes, using the orientation of the mobile devices to determine the asymmetric modes in which the mobile devices are operated. Requests may be received to initiate wireless communications using a wireless protocol that supports at least two asymmetric communication modes. The orientation of the mobile devices may be determined, and the asymmetric communication modes to be used by the mobile devices may be based on the orientations of the mobile device. Each mobile device may be configured to operate in the determined asymmetric communication mode of the wireless protocol, for establishing communications via the wireless protocol with other mobile devices.

CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No.62/879,975, filed Jul. 29, 2019, entitled “Wireless Communication ModesBased On Mobile Device Orientation,” the disclosure of which isincorporated by reference herein in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

Many different types of wireless network protocols have been implementedto support wireless communications between mobile devices, includingdevice-to-device file transfers, Internet-of-Things (IoT) environments,remote device automation and control systems, and the like. Differentwireless protocols may have different characteristics based on theirnetwork infrastructures, the network layers in which they operate, andthe capabilities and requirements of the protocols. For instance,wireless protocols may differ significantly with respect to transmissionranges, data transfer rates, power consumption requirements,security/encryption capabilities, etc. However, regardless of thedifferent characteristics of wireless protocols, there may besimilarities in the techniques used to establish wireless connectionsand transmit data between devices.

To establish a wireless connection between mobile devices, using anynumber of different wireless protocols, a first mobile device maygenerate and transmit an initial communication to a second mobiledevice. In some cases, the initial communication may contain the data tobe transferred to the second mobile device. For example, in the nearfield communication (NFC) wireless protocol used for short-rangewireless data transfers, a first device may generate a magnetic fieldmodulated with the information to be transferred. The magnetic fieldgenerated by the first device may inductively couple onto a seconddevice that is located near the first device, and the second device mayrespond by generating its own modulated magnetic field to be inductivelycoupled to the first device. In other cases, the initial communicationfrom the mobile device may correspond to a request for a connection orsession, and may include information such as device identifiers, headerinformation, protocol or encryption details, etc. For example, in asecure Bluetooth wireless protocol, the first device may transmit aninitial pairing request, and the second device may reply with a pairingresponse, after which the devices may generate and exchange encryptionkeys and proceed with the data transfer via a secure connection.

Certain wireless protocols may support symmetric and/or asymmetriccommunication modes for establishing wireless connections between mobiledevices. When a mobile device is operating in a symmetric communicationmode of a wireless protocol, the device may transmit/generatecommunications to other mobile devices while simultaneously listeningfor communications from other mobile devices to establish connections.In contrast, when a mobile device is operating in an asymmetriccommunication mode of a wireless protocol, the device may eithertransmit/generate communications or listen for communications from otherdevices, but would not simultaneously transmit/generate communicationsand listen for communications. Thus, mobile devices operating insymmetric communication modes of a wireless protocol may be able toestablishing wireless connections more quickly, by simultaneouslybroadcasting to and listening for other mobile devices. However,symmetric communication modes for certain wireless protocols also mayhave certain disadvantages with respect to processing overhead andnetwork/device security.

BRIEF SUMMARY

Techniques are described herein for establishing wireless communicationsbetween mobile computing devices via wireless protocols in asymmetricmodes, using the orientation of the mobile devices to determine theasymmetric modes in which the mobile devices are operated. In someembodiments, requests may be received to initiate wirelesscommunications using a wireless protocol that supports at least twoasymmetric communication modes. Asymmetric communication modes of awireless protocol may include, for example, a broadcasting mode and alistening mode. The orientation of a mobile device may be determined,and the asymmetric communication mode to be used by the mobile devicemay be based on its orientation. The mobile device then may beconfigured to operate in the determined asymmetric communication mode ofthe wireless protocol, for establishing communications via the wirelessprotocol with other mobile devices.

Additional techniques are described for performing mode-switchingcycles, in which a mobile device may be iteratively reconfigured betweenoperating in different asymmetric communication modes of the wirelessprotocol, thereby enabling wireless communications to be establishedmore efficiently between mobile devices. For example, two differentmobile devices each may be cycled between a broadcasting mode and alistening mode, thereby allowing the two devices to quickly establishcommunications during a time when the devices are operating in differentasymmetric communication modes of the wireless protocol. In someembodiments, each mobile device may determine a frequency for amode-switching cycle, and a cycle start time including a time offsetbased on the orientation of the device. Each mobile device may switchbetween the asymmetric communication modes of the wireless protocol,beginning at the offset cycle start time and switching iterativelyaccording to the frequency, until communications are established with adevice in a different asymmetric communication mode. In variousexamples, different ranges of possible orientations of the mobile devicemay be assigned to different communication modes, or a time offset valuemay be calculated based on the angular distance between the orientationof the mobile device and a predetermined fixed heading. Additionally, incertain embodiments, if the mobile device has not established wirelesscommunications with another device after a predefined threshold time orthreshold number of cycles, then the mobile device may automaticallymodify its offset cycle start time and continue the mode-switching cycleusing the modified offset time.

These and other embodiments of the disclosure are described in detailbelow. For example, other embodiments are directed to systems, devices,and computer readable media associated with methods described herein.

A better understanding of the nature and advantages of embodiments ofthe present invention may be gained with reference to the followingdetailed description and the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows an example of two mobile devices configured to communicatevia a wireless protocol according to embodiments of the presentdisclosure.

FIGS. 2A and 2B are flowcharts illustrating methods for performing adata transfer between mobile devices using a wireless protocol accordingto embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIGS. 3A-3C are diagrams illustrating wireless communication attemptsbetween mobile devices operating in asymmetric communication modesaccording to embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIGS. 4A and 4B are flowcharts illustrating methods for operating amobile device in two different asymmetric communication modes of the NFCwireless protocol, according to embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 5 shows an example of two mobile devices configured to communicatevia asymmetric communication modes of a wireless protocol, based on theorientation of the devices, according to embodiments of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a method for configuring a mobiledevice to operate in an asymmetric communication mode based on theorientation of the device, according to embodiments of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 7 shows an example of a mobile device configured to operate in anasymmetric communication mode of a wireless protocol based on theorientation of the device, according to embodiments of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 8 shows two graphs illustrating mode-switching cycles beingperformed by two mobile devices, according to embodiments of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating a method for performing amode-switching cycle by a mobile device between different asymmetriccommunication modes, according to embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating a method for performing deviceorientation-based cycling between asymmetric communication modes of awireless protocol according to embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 11 shows an example of a mobile device oriented at a particularangle which may be used to determine a mode-switching cycle for themobile device according to embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating a method for performing randommodifications of time offset values during mode-switching cycles,according to embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 13 shows a graph illustrating a mode-switching cycle beingperformed by a mobile device, according to embodiments of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 14 is a block diagram of an example device according to aspects ofthe present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Aspects of the present disclosure provide various techniques (e.g.,methods, systems, devices, computer-readable media storingcomputer-executable instructions used to perform computing functions,etc.) for establishing wireless communications (e.g., connections orother connectionless communication sessions) between mobile computingdevices via wireless protocols in asymmetric modes, using theorientation of the mobile devices to determine the asymmetric modes inwhich the mobile devices are operated. In the various embodiments andexamples described herein, requests may be received to initiate wirelesscommunications using a wireless protocol that supports at least twoasymmetric communication modes. The orientation of a mobile device maybe determined, and the asymmetric communication mode to be used by themobile device may be based on its orientation. The mobile device mayoperate in the determined asymmetric communication mode of the wirelessprotocol, for establishing communications via the wireless protocol withother mobile devices.

Additional techniques are described herein for performing mode-switchingcycles, in which a mobile device may be iteratively reconfigured betweenoperating in different asymmetric communication modes of the wirelessprotocol. For example, a mobile device may be cycled between abroadcasting mode and a listening mode, during which the device mayestablish communications with another device operating in the otherasymmetric communication modes. In some embodiments, each mobile devicemay determine a frequency for a mode-switching cycle, and a cycle starttime including a time offset based on the orientation of the device. Insome cases, it might not be necessary for the mobile device to determinecycle start time. Rather, the current mode may be determined based onthe current time and current heading only, assuming that a clock withinthe mobile device is synchronized with the clock of the other device.Each mobile device may switch between the asymmetric communication modesof the wireless protocol, beginning at the offset cycle start time andswitching iteratively according to the frequency, until communicationsare established with another device operating in the other asymmetriccommunication mode. In some cases, different ranges of possibleorientations of the mobile device may be assigned to differentcommunication modes, while in other cases a time offset value may becalculated based on the angular distance between the orientation of themobile device and a predetermined fixed heading. Additionally, incertain embodiments, if the mobile device has not established wirelesscommunications with another device after a predefined threshold time orthreshold number of cycles, then the mobile device may automaticallymodify its offset cycle start time and continue the mode-switching cycleusing the modified offset time.

I. Mobile Device Communications Using Wireless Protocols

Various embodiments herein relate to wireless network communications(e.g., connections and/or data transfers) between mobile devices. Thewireless connections and data transfers described in these examples maybe performed using various different wireless network protocols.Different wireless protocols may have different characteristics and maysupport different types of communications between mobile devices. Forexample, certain wireless protocols may apply to short-rangetransmissions only, while only wireless protocols may be used formedium-range and long-range transmissions. Additionally, certainwireless protocols may operate on cellular telecommunication networks,while others operate on local area networks (LANs) and/or wide areanetworks (WANs) via IP-based communication, and still others operateover on network infrastructures (e.g., cable or satellite) and othersoperate on different network layers (e.g., medium access control (MAC)layer, application layer, etc.). As another example, certain wirelessprotocols may be designed for low-power (or even non-powered) devices,while other wireless protocols may require relatively high-poweredmobile devices. By way of example only, the types of wireless protocolsand technologies that may be used in the various embodiments andexamples described herein may include near field communication (NFC),Ultra Wideband (UWB), radio frequency identification (RFID), MessageQueue Telemetry Transport (MQTT), Data Distribution Service (DDS),Advanced Message Queuing Protocol (AMQP), Bluetooth, ZigBee, Wi-Fi,cellular (e.g., GSM, 3G, 4G, 5G, LTE), Long Range Wide Area Network(LoRaWAN), and Narrowband IoT (NB-IoT), among others.

Using one or more wireless protocols, mobile devices may communicatewith other mobile devices, non-mobile computing devices, and/or otherphysical objects such as NFC or RFID smart tags. Wireless communicationsmay be used to implement a broad range of technologies, includingdevice-to-device file transfers, contact sharing, media streaming,Internet-of-Things (IoT) systems, remote device automation and control,etc. Additionally, although certain examples are described below interms of specific types of wireless protocols, such as near fieldcommunication (NFC), Ultra Wideband (UWB), and Bluetooth, it should beunderstood that the techniques described herein are not limited to anyspecific wireless protocols, but may be applied to any wirelessprotocols by which connections are established or data is transferredbetween mobile devices.

FIG. 1 shows an example of two mobile devices configured to communicatevia a wireless protocol according to embodiments of the presentdisclosure. In this example, mobile devices 100 a and 100 b (which maybe referred to individually or collectively as mobile device(s) 100),include similar components configured to support wireless communicationsvia one or more wireless protocols. Mobile devices 100 a and 100 binclude antennas 110 a and 100 b for transmitting/receiving wirelesscommunications, mobile device processors 120 a and 120 b, wirelessprotocol controllers 130 a and 130 b, and secure storages 140 a and 140b.

The components of the example mobile devices 100 are described ingeneral terms, but may be structured and implemented differentlydepending on which wireless protocols are supported by mobile devices100 in different embodiments. For example, when communicating via thenear field communication (NFC) short-range wireless protocol, antennas110 a and 100 b may correspond to two loop antennas configured togenerate magnetic fields and inductively couple to magnetic fieldsgenerated by other devices. When using NFC, controllers 130 a and 130 bmay correspond to NFC controllers, which may support multiplecommunication modes, including a peer-to-peer symmetric communicationmode, a tag mode (or asymmetric listening mode), and a scanning mode (orasymmetric broadcasting mode). Secure storage elements 140 a and 140 bmay be, for example, SIM cards or embedded secure elements.

A. Example of General Wireless Communications Using Wireless Protocols

FIG. 2A is a flowchart illustrating a method for performing a datatransfer between mobile devices using a wireless protocol according toembodiments of the present disclosure. The steps in this example methodmay be performed by either or both of mobile devices 100, and thesesteps may be general to multiple types of wireless protocols. In step201, the wireless protocol controller 130 on a mobile device 100 may beactivated. In some embodiments, a single mobile device 100 may includemultiple different controllers 130, each configured to support differenttypes of wireless protocols (e.g., an NFC controller, Bluetoothcontroller, WiFi controller, etc.). The wireless protocol controllers130 in a mobile device 100 may be activated and de-activated based oncommands from a user (e.g., by setting and unsetting airplane mode,turning on and off WiFi, Bluetooth, etc.), or programmatically based oninstructions from the mobile operating system and/or mobile applicationsinstalled on the device 100.

In step 202, the mobile device 100 may attempt to detect one or moreother mobile devices 100 capable of communicating via the same wirelessprotocol. Depending on the wireless protocols used, step 202 may includegenerating/transmitting a broadcast message to any device in range, ormay include communications specifically targeted to one other mobiledevice 100. Step 202 may include an initial request send via thewireless protocol controller 130 to detect other devices within thenetwork having activated controllers 130 compatible with the samewireless protocol. However, in NFC and other short-range technologies,the attempt to detect in step 202 may include generating and emitting amagnetic field including the data to be transferred.

In step 203, the mobile device 100 may receive a response sent from asecond mobile device, and wireless communications may be establishedbetween the mobile devices 100 using the wireless protocol. For somewireless protocols, such as NFC, step 203 may be optional and adevice-to-device connection need not be expressly established beforetransferring data between the devices. In other examples, step 203 mayinclude pairing devices, initiating a WiFi connection, etc.

In step 204, the connected mobile devices 100 may exchange data, eithervia a one-way or two-way transmission channel. As noted above, thecharacteristics of the data transfer in step 204, including one-way ortwo-day, data rate, network types, transmission range, etc., may varysignificantly depending on the characteristics of the mobile devices 100and the wireless protocol being used.

B. Example of Secure Wireless Communications Using NFC and Bluetooth

As discussed above in FIG. 2A, steps 201-204 illustrate a generalizedprocess for establishing a wireless connection and/or wireless datatransfer that may apply to multiple wireless protocols. However, theremay be unique differences for each different wireless protocol in how(and if) wireless communications are established, and in how data istransferred between the mobile devices 100. Further, in someembodiments, multiple different wireless protocols may be used incombination to perform a wireless data transfer process, as illustratedby the example below in FIG. 2B.

FIG. 2B is a flowchart illustrating a method for performing a datatransfer between mobile devices, using the near field communication(NFC) and secure Bluetooth wireless protocols, according to embodimentsof the present disclosure. In step 251, mobile devices 100 a and 100 bmay activate their NFC controllers 130 a and 130 b, using either asymmetric (e.g., bi-directional) or an asymmetric (e.g., unidirectional)communication mode for broadcasting and/or receiving data via theshort-range NFC network. In step 252, the mobile devices 100 a and 100 bmay exchange encryption keys via NFC. The encryption keys exchanged instep 252 may be, for example, randomly generated shared keys, or theindividual public keys of the mobile devices 100 a and 100 b. Thus, inat least some embodiments, it may be assumed that mobile devices 100 aand 100 b have not previously exchanged keys and do not have an existingrelationship to secure the exchange of the data.

In step 253, mobile devices 100 a and 100 b may establish a secureBluetooth connection using the encryption keys exchange via NFC in step252. Then, in step 254, the mobile devices 100 a and 100 b may transferdata using the secure encrypted Bluetooth connection. The data transfersin step 254 may be unidirectional or bi-directional, and may includesecure device-to-device file transfers, contact sharing, or any otherencrypted data transfer. The secure data transfers described in FIG. 2Bmay include technical advantages over conventional techniques, includingimproved data security. For example, by exchanging encryption keys usinga first wireless protocol (e.g., NFC) which is difficult to passivelymonitor, and then using those encryption keys by a second wirelessprotocol (e.g., Bluetooth) configured to support secure data transfer,wireless communications and data transfers may be performed moresecurely between mobile devices 100 with no previous existingrelationships for securely transferring data.

II. Asymmetrical Modes to Establish Wireless Communications

Wireless protocols may support symmetric and/or asymmetric communicationmodes for establishing communications and performing data transfers. Asused herein a symmetric communication mode may refer to the capabilityof operating in a broadcasting mode by broadcasting data via a wirelessprotocol, while simultaneously operating in a listening mode by scanningfor and receiving communications from other mobile devices via thewireless protocol. Thus, a symmetric communication mode also may bereferred to as a bi-directional communication mode. For example, withinthe near field communication (NFC) wireless protocol, peer-to-peer modemay be a symmetric communication mode during which NFC mobile devices100 may exchange data with other NFC mobile devices 100. In contrast, anasymmetric communication mode may refer to the capability of eitheroperating in a broadcasting mode by broadcasting data via the wirelessprotocol, or operating in a listening mode by scanning for and receivingcommunications from other mobile devices via the wireless protocol, butnot simultaneously operating in the broadcasting mode and listeningmode. Thus, an asymmetric communication mode also may be referred to asa unidirectional communication mode. For example, within the near fieldcommunication (NFC) wireless protocol, reader/writer mode may be abroadcasting asymmetric communication mode, while card emulation modemay be a listening asymmetric communication mode. In NFC, thereader/writer may be considered the broadcaster or a listener. Forexample, if a reader/writer device is reading a tag, the tag may besupplying the information, but the reader/writer device may be supplyingthe energy to read the tag. Thus, depending on whether “broadcasting” isconsidered in terms of the direction of information flow, or thedirection of electromagnetic energy, a reader/writer device may beconsidered a broadcaster or a listener. However, regardless of theterminology used for the different asymmetric communication modes, thetechniques described herein apply to establish communication sessionsbetween mobile computing devices operating in asymmetric modes, by usingthe orientation of the mobile devices to determine/set differentasymmetric modes for operating the mobile devices.

As noted above, mobile devices operating in symmetric communicationmodes may potentially establish wireless communications and transferdata between devices more quickly, by simultaneously broadcasting to andlistening for other mobile devices. However, symmetric communicationmodes might not be supported by all wireless protocols. Asymmetriccommunication modes also may be preferred in some embodiments, even whena symmetric communication mode is supported. For instance, asymmetriccommunication modes may provide potential technical advantages withrespect data/network security and processing overhead. However, asillustrated in FIGS. 3A-3B, mobile devices using asymmetriccommunication modes may encounter difficulties in establishing wirelesscommunications and performing data transfers.

FIGS. 3A-3C are diagrams illustrating wireless communication attemptsbetween mobile devices operating in asymmetric communication modesaccording to embodiments of the present disclosure. In FIG. 3A, bothmobile devices 100 a and 100 b are operating in an asymmetric listeningmode of the wireless protocol. Accordingly, because neither device inFIG. 3A is broadcasting, the devices might not detect one another andthus might not be able to successfully establish a connection orcommunicate data. In FIG. 3B, both mobile devices 100 a and 100 b areoperating in an asymmetric broadcasting mode of the wireless protocol.Because both devices in FIG. 3B are broadcasting, and neither device isconfigured to listen to the broadcasts of the other device, thesedevices also might not detect one another and might not be able tosuccessfully establish a connection or communicate data. However, inFIG. 3C, mobile device 100 a is operating in an asymmetric listeningmode and device 100 b is operating in an asymmetric broadcasting mode.Thus, assuming that the devices 100 a and 100 b are on the same networkand/or within range of each other, and assuming that devices 100 a and100 b stay in their respective asymmetric modes for a sufficient periodof time, the devices 100 a and 100 b may successfully establish awireless connection and communicate data.

FIGS. 4A and 4B are flowcharts illustrating methods for operating amobile device in two different asymmetric communication modes of the NFCwireless protocol, according to embodiments of the present disclosure.As shown in this example, FIG. 4A corresponds to a process performed byan NFC device operating in an asymmetric listening mode (e.g., mobiledevice 100 a in FIG. 3C), and FIG. 4B corresponds to a process performedby an NFC device operating in an asymmetric broadcasting mode (e.g.,mobile device 100 b in FIG. 3C).

In step 401, the NFC controller 130 a in mobile device 100 a may be setto an asymmetric listening mode. As noted above, the activation of awireless protocol controller 130 and setting the communication mode maybe performed in response to a user action on the mobile device 100 a, orprogrammatically based on instructions from the mobile operating systemand/or mobile applications installed on the device 100 a. In steps 402and 403, the mobile device 100 a may operate in the asymmetric listeningmode, which for the NFC wireless protocol may correspond to a cardemulation mode. Within NFC card emulation mode, the mobile device 100 aoperates the same as a contactless smart card, and in some embodimentsNFC-enabled mobile devices 100 may emulate multiple different smartcards at the same time. In step 404, if the mobile device 100 a hasreceived a modulated magnetic field from another mobile device 100 b,the mobile device 100 a may exit listening more and inductively couplethe modulated magnetic field to receive the information from thebroadcasting mobile device 100 b. In some cases, the mobile device 100 aalso may be generating a different modulated magnetic field to beinductively coupled to the first device. In some embodiments, acontactless smart card may be either be read from or written to in agiven session.

Steps 405-408 in FIG. 4B represent steps that may be performed by an NFCdevice operating in an asymmetric broadcasting mode, which for the NFCwireless protocol may correspond to a reader/writer mode. For mobiledevices 100 operating in asymmetric communication modes, these steps maybe performed by a different mobile device 100 b than the mobile device100 a performing steps 401-404. Alternatively, steps 401-404 and steps405-408 may be performed by the same NFC-enabled mobile device 100, butat different times (e.g., after a mode-switching operation). In step405, the NFC controller 130 b in mobile device 100 b may be set to anasymmetric broadcasting mode (e.g., NFC reader-writer mode). As notedabove, the activation of a wireless protocol controller 130 and settingthe communication mode may be performed in response to a user action orprogrammatically by the mobile operating system and/or mobileapplications installed on the device 100 b. In steps 406 and 407, themobile device 100 b may operate in the asymmetric broadcasting mode,which for the NFC wireless protocol includes generating a modulatedmagnetic field that includes the data to be transmitted. In step 408, ifthe mobile device 100 b has received a response to its modulatedmagnetic field from another mobile device 100 a, the mobile device 100 bmay exit broadcasting mode and receive response data (via a modulatedmagnetic field) from the corresponding mobile device 100 a.

III. Mobile Device Orientation to Determine Asymmetric Mode

When a mobile device 100 is configured to operate in an asymmetric modeof a wireless network protocol, the mobile device 100 may be incapableof simultaneously broadcasting signals to other mobile devices whilealso listening for signals from other mobile devices. For example, whenoperating in an asymmetric broadcasting mode, a mobile device 100 mightonly generate or transmit a signal and may be unable to receive incomingsignals. Conversely, when operating in an asymmetric listening mode, themobile device 100 might only be configured to receive incoming signalsand may be unable to generate or transmit signals to other mobiledevices. As illustrated above in FIGS. 3A-3B, mobile devices 100 usingasymmetric communication modes may encounter difficulties inestablishing wireless connections and performing data transfers. If twomobile devices 100 a and 100 b are operating within the same asymmetricmode, they may be unable to detect the other device and/or to establisha connection or transfer data between devices. Instead, the mobiledevices 100 a and 100 b may be required to operate in differentasymmetric communication modes, for at least minimum amount of time, toallow the devices to detect one another and establish a connection orinitiate a data transfer.

Accordingly, certain aspects described herein include using theorientation of a mobile device 100 to determine the asymmetriccommunication mode in which the mobile device 100 operates. In variousembodiments, technical advantages may be realized when using mobiledevice orientations to determine the asymmetric communication modes. Forexample, two different mobile devices 100 have synchronized clocks andare running similar processes for selecting an asymmetric communicationmode, the typical outcome may be that the mobile devices 100 will selectthe same asymmetric communication mode, resulting in incompatible modesin which the devices 100 are unable to establish a connection ortransfer data between devices. In contrast, when using the orientationsof the mobile devices 100, two mobile devices 100 having synchronizedclocks and running similar or identical processes may nonetheless selectdifferent asymmetric communication modes. Additionally, in common usagescenarios such as when two different mobile devices 100 are facing oneanother to establish a connection or perform a data transfer, anorientation-based determination may cause the mobile devices 100 toselect different asymmetric communication modes which may allow thedevices to more quickly establish connections and initiate datatransfers.

FIG. 5 shows an example of two mobile devices configured to communicatevia asymmetric communication modes of a wireless protocol, based on theorientation of the devices, according to embodiments of the presentdisclosure. In FIG. 5, two mobile devices 100 a and 100 b are showngenerally facing one another, and thus devices 100 a and 100 b in thisexample have generally opposite orientations. In some cases, therespective orientations of mobile devices 100 a and 100 b may indicatethat different users are holding mobile devices 100 a and 100 b andfacing each other while attempting to establish a connection or performa data transfer.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a method for configuring a mobiledevice to operate in an asymmetric communication mode based on theorientation of the device, according to embodiments of the presentdisclosure. As discussed below, the process described in FIG. 6 may beperformed independently by different mobile devices 100 a and 100 b, forexample, within the wireless protocol controllers 130 of the devices100.

In step 601, a request may be received by the mobile device 100 toinitiate a wireless connection and/or wirelessly data transfer. Therequest in step 601 may be initiated by a user of the wireless device100 in some examples. For instance, a user of a smartphone mobile device100 may perform a “bump” to initiate a transfer of contacts or picturesto a nearby device, or may initiate a device search/pairing function tobe used for file transfers, data sharing, etc. In other examples, therequest in step 601 may correspond to a command from the mobileoperating system of the device 100, or from a mobile applicationinstalled on the device 100, and may be received and handled without anyuser interaction. In still other examples, the request in step 601 maybe a request from another wireless device requesting to establish aconnection and/or transfer data to/from the mobile device 100.

In step 602, in response to the request in step 601, the currentorientation of the mobile device 100 may be determined. In variousembodiments, the orientation determination in step 602 may be anabsolute orientation reading, or an orientation reading relative to apredetermined fixed heading (e.g., magnetic north) or relative toanother mobile device. In some embodiments, the orientationdetermination may be a 2-axis orientation which may be unaffected by anyup-down tilt of the mobile device 100. In other embodiments, a 3-axisorientation may be determined for the mobile device 100, for example,based on a combination of magnetic sensors and a tilt sensor to measurea gravity vector.

In some embodiments, to determine the orientation of the mobile device100, the wireless protocol controller 130 may retrieve an orientationreading from an internal compass of the mobile device 100. In somecases, data from compass sensors within a mobile device 100 may beretrieved and analyzed in conjunction with other movement sensors withinthe mobile device 100 (e.g., gyroscope, accelerometer, etc.). Forexample, if a compass reading was recently taken at the mobile device100, and the movement sensors indicate that the device has not movedsince the last compass reading, then it may be unnecessary to retrieve anew compass measurement in step 602. In other examples, multiple compassmeasurements may be taken at and around the time of the request in step601, and the compass measurements may be analyzed and corrected toaccount for interference or other compass errors.

Instead of, or in addition to, using an internal compass to determinethe orientation of the mobile device 100, other orientation techniquesmay be used in other examples. For instance, in some embodiments, amobile device may include ranging circuitry that can determine therelative distance between mobile devices. For example, time-of-flightmeasurements can be performed using ultra-wideband (UWB) pulsestransmitted between two mobile devices 100 a and 100 b. The ranging mayprovide distance information, which can be used to determine a relativeposition of the mobile devices 100 a and 100 b, for example, distancesand/or an angular (orientation) differences between the two devices. Forinstance, mobile devices 100 a and 100 b may include ultra-wideband(UWB) antennas and UWB circuitry configured to perform ranging. The UWBantennas may detect signals and the UWB circuitry may analyze thedetected signals. In some embodiments, mobile devices 100 may includethree or more UWB antennas to support triangulation. The different UWBantennas may have different orientations, for example, two antennasoriented in one direction and a third oriented in another direction. Theorientations of the UWB antennas may define a field of view for ranging.Such regulation may allow a determination of which direction a user ispointing a mobile device 100 a relative to one or more other nearbydevices 100 b. The field of view may include any one or more of pitch,yaw, or roll angles.

In step 603, the wireless protocol controller 130 of the mobile device100 may determine an asymmetric communication mode for operating themobile device 100, based on the orientation of the mobile device 100. Insome embodiments, the orientation determined in step 602 may be mappedto a corresponding asymmetric communication mode based on a mappingtable, orientation ranges, etc. For example, FIG. 7 shows an example ofa mobile device 100 configured to operate in an asymmetric communicationmode of a wireless protocol, based on the orientation of the device. Inthis example, two orientation ranges of 180 degrees have been definedfor assigning asymmetric communication modes to mobile devices 100 basedon their orientations. The first orientation range 710 covering anywest-facing orientation maps to a first asymmetric mode, and the secondorientation range 720 covering any east-facing orientation maps to asecond asymmetric mode. Although two orientation ranges are shown inthis example corresponding to two different asymmetric communicationmodes, any number of different orientation ranges may be used in otherexamples. A 2-axis compass covering 360 degrees may be divided into anynumber of different orientation ranges (e.g., 4 orientation ranges, 6orientation ranges, etc.), each corresponding to a different asymmetriccommunication mode. Additionally, in some embodiment, 3-axis deviceorientation measurements may be used, and the mapping betweenorientation ranges and asymmetric communication modes may be based onall three dimensions of the mobile device's orientation.

In step 604, the wireless protocol controller 130 of the mobile device100 may be configured to operate in the particular asymmetriccommunication mode determined in step 603. In this example, the mobiledevice 100 would be assigned the second asymmetric communication modecorresponding to the second orientation range 720. The asymmetric modesfor orientation ranges 710 and 720 may correspond to a broadcasting modeand a listening mode, or vice versa.

IV. Cycling Between Broadcasting Mode and Passive Mode

As discussed above, when two different mobile devices 100 are configuredto operate in the same asymmetric communication mode, these devices maybe establish a connection or transfer data. For example, two mobiledevices 100 a and 100 b which are both operating in an asymmetricbroadcasting mode of a wireless protocol at the same time, may be unableto detect one another to establish a connection or transfer data.Similarly, if both mobile devices 100 a and 100 b are both operating inan asymmetric listening mode of the wireless protocol at the same time,they also may be unable to detect one another to establish a connectionor transfer data. In order to address the issue of mobile devices 100operating in incompatible asymmetric communication modes, certainembodiments include configuring mobile devices 100 to periodicallyswitch between asymmetric communication modes.

FIG. 8 shows two graphs illustrating mode-switching cycles beingperformed by two mobile devices, according to embodiments of the presentdisclosure. In this example, a first graph 800 a charts an iterativereconfiguration between asymmetric modes in a first mobile device 100 a,as the mobile device 100 a switches between the broadcasting mode andthe listening mode of the wireless protocol. A second graph 800 b chartsanother iterative reconfiguration between the broadcast and listeningasymmetric modes in a second mobile device 100 b. Switching periodicallybetween asymmetric communication modes of a wireless protocol as shownin these examples may be referred to as a mode-switching cycle and/or aniterative reconfiguration between modes. In these examples, themode-switching cycles shown in graphs 800 a and 800 b are performed atregular intervals. The frequency for a mode-switching cycle may bedetermined based on the hardware of the mobile device 100. For example,the wireless protocol controller 130 may select the highestmode-switching frequency supported by the wireless communicationinfrastructure of the mobile device 100.

In the examples of mode-switching cycles shown in FIG. 8, both mobiledevices 100 a and 100 b switch regularly using the same frequencybetween the same asymmetric communication modes. However, in otherembodiments, different mobile devices 100 may cycle at differentfrequencies and/or may cycle between different numbers of asymmetriccommunication modes. Additionally, mode-switching need not by performedin cycles at regular intervals based on a predefined frequency as shownin these examples. Instead a wireless protocol controller 130 mayimplement irregular and/or random switches between differentcommunication modes. In some embodiments, the devices might need to usethe same frequency, which may require all devices to use slowesthardware-supported frequency across all supported device models.

Two different points in time are identified in FIG. 8. At time 801, bothmobile devices 100 a and 100 b are operating in broadcasting mode, andthus the devices may be unable to detect each other or establish acommunication session at time 801. However, at time 802, mobile device100 a is operating in broadcasting mode while mobile device 100 b isoperating in listening mode. Therefore, mobile devices 100 a and 100 bmay be able to establish a connection and/or initiate a data transfer attime 802, as long as the mobile devices 100 a and 100 b stay incompatible modes for a sufficient amount of time to allow the wirelessprotocol controllers 130 to setup the connection or data transfer.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating a method for performing amode-switching cycle by a single mobile device 100, between twodifferent asymmetric communication modes according to embodiments of thepresent disclosure. In step 901, the wireless protocol controller 130 ofthe mobile device 100 may be set to a broadcasting mode of the wirelessprotocol. In step 902, while in broadcasting mode, the wireless protocolcontroller 130 may be configured to attempt to communicate with one ormore other mobile devices 100. Depending on the type of the wirelessprotocol used, the communication attempt in step 902 may be devicedetection routine, an attempt to discover and pair with other devices,broadcasts of data to be shared, and/or attempts to connect with andestablish network sessions with other devices. After remaining inbroadcasting mode for a predetermined period of time in step 902 (e.g.,a predefined time interval N), then in step 903 the wireless protocolcontroller 130 may be reconfigured to a listening mode of the wirelessprotocol. In step 903, while in listening mode, the wireless protocolcontroller 130 may be configured to detect communication from othermobile devices 100 operating in a broadcasting mode of the same wirelessprotocol. Then, after remaining in broadcasting mode for the samepredetermined period of time in step 904, the wireless protocolcontroller 130 may be reconfigured again to the broadcasting mode instep 901.

V. Orientation-Based Cycling

Certain aspects described herein relate to cycling a mobile devicebetween asymmetric communication modes of a wireless protocol, whileusing the orientation of the mobile device to determine thecharacteristics of the cycling process. Section III above describedtechniques for selecting an asymmetric communication mode of a wirelessprotocol to be used by a mobile device 100, based on the orientation ofthe mobile device. For example, different mobile devices 100 a and 100 bfacing different directions may be set to different asymmetric modes.Section IV above described a different set of techniques for cyclingbetween asymmetric modes of a wireless protocol. For example, a mobiledevice 100 may implement a mode-switching cycle, during which thewireless protocol controller 130 of the device 100 may periodicallyreconfigure between a broadcasting mode and a listening mode. However,as described in these sections, an orientation-based selection of anasymmetric mode need not require cycling between modes, and implementmode-switching cycles need not require any use of device orientation.Thus, the current section describes embodiments which combine aspectsfrom previous sections, including cycling between asymmetriccommunication modes of a wireless protocol, based on the orientation ofthe mobile device.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating a method for performing deviceorientation-based cycling between asymmetric communication modes of awireless protocol according to embodiments of the present disclosure. Asdescribed below, determining the characteristics of a mode-switchingcycle (or iterative reconfiguration of the mobile device betweenasymmetric communication modes) may be performed by a wireless protocolcontroller 130 in conjunction with various other hardware and softwaresystems of a mobile device 100.

In step 1001, a request may be received to initiate a mode-switchingcycle on a mobile device 100. Step 1001 may be similar or identical tostep 601, discussed above, in which some client process on the mobiledevice 100 may initiate a request to establish a wireless connection orperform a wireless data transfer with another device. For example, arequest to initiate a mode-switching cycle may correspond to a userrequest to perform a “bump” transfer of contacts or pictures to anothernearby device, or to initiate a device search/pairing function to beused for file transfers, data sharing, etc. The request in step 1001also may be based on a command from the mobile operating system of thedevice 100, or from a mobile application installed on the device 100.Thus, an end user or client process that causes the request in step 1001might only be attempting to establish a wireless connection or perform awireless data transfer, and the underlying techniques used by thewireless protocol controller 130 to establish the connection or performthe transfer (e.g., mode-cycling or not, orientation-based on not,etc.), may be transparent to the end user or client process.

In step 1002, the wireless protocol controller 130 of the mobile device100 may determine a frequency value for the mode switching cycle. Afrequency value for a mode switching cycle may correspond to the lengthof time between each mode switch. In some embodiments, the wirelessprotocol controller 130 may determine the frequency for themode-switching cycle based on the hardware of the mobile device 100. Forexample, it may be desirable in some embodiments to switch asymmetriccommunication modes as frequently as possible, to more efficientlyconnect to another device. In such embodiments, the wireless protocolcontroller 130 may select the highest possible mode-switching frequencysupported by the wireless communication infrastructure of the mobiledevice 100.

In step 1003, the wireless protocol controller 130 of the mobile device100 may determine a start time for the mode switching cycle. The cyclestart time determined in step 1003 may be an absolute time or a timerelative to other events occurring at the mobile device 100 or withinthe wireless network. In certain embodiments, the system clock of themobile device 100 may be synchronized with one or other mobile devices100, and the determined cycle start time may be the same for differentmobile devices 100. In other examples, the wireless protocol controllers130 in different mobile devices 100 may internally synchronize theirtiming processes, as well as the synchronizing the cycle start times instep 1003, even when the system clocks of their mobile devices 100 arenot synchronized.

In step 1004, the wireless protocol controller 130 may determine acurrent orientation of the mobile device 100. In some cases, thedetermination of the mobile device orientation in step 1004 may besimilar or identical to the orientation determination in step 602,discussed above. For example, the wireless protocol controller 130 mayretrieve a reading from one or more internal compass sensors of themobile device 100. In some cases, data from the compass sensors may beanalyzed in conjunction with data from other movement sensors (e.g.,gyroscope, accelerometer, etc.) within the mobile device 100.

Additionally, as discussed above, other orientation techniques may beused in other embodiments, including using ranging circuitry within oneor more mobile devices 100 to determine the relative distances andorientations between the mobile devices. For example, time-of-flightmeasurements can be performed using ultra-wideband (UWB) pulsestransmitted between two mobile devices 100 a and 100 b. Ranging mayprovide distance information, which can be used to determine a relativeposition of the mobile devices 100, including distances and/or anangular (orientation) differences between the two devices. Thus, in someembodiments the device orientation determined in step 1004 need not bean absolute orientation, but may be an orientation of the mobile device100 a relative to one or more other nearby devices 100 b.

In step 1005, the wireless protocol controller 130 may determine a timeoffset based on the determined orientation of the mobile device 100. Asdiscussed below, a time offset (which also may be referred to as a phaseshift) may correspond to the amount of time that a mode-switching cycleis shifted. Accordingly, because the frequency value may correspond tothe length of time to complete one switching cycle, then the time offsetvalue determined in step 1005 may correspond to a length of time betweenzero and the frequency value. In various embodiments, differenttechniques may be used for determining the time offset value for amode-switching cycle, based on the device orientation. Two differentexamples of such techniques are described in the subsections below.

One-Half Frequency Offset for Half of Compass

In some embodiments, determining a time offset value for amode-switching cycle in step 1005, may include defining two possibleorientation ranges of 180 degrees, and applying a one-half frequencyoffset (e.g., 0.5*frequency value) when the mobile device 100 isoriented within only one of the 180 degree ranges. For example,referring again to FIG. 7, a compass is shown having two separate 180degree orientation ranges 710 and 720. Applying these orientation rangesto the time offset determination in step 1005, if the orientation of themobile device 100 falls within the first orientation range 710, then thetime offset value may be set to zero, but if the orientation of themobile device 100 falls within the second orientation range 720, thenthe time offset value may be set to one-half the frequency value, orvice versa. Thus, this technique for determining time offset values mayassure that if two mobile devices 100 are directly facing each other,then a one-half frequency offset may be determined for one of thedevices and no offset may be determined for the other device. Fordevices directly facing each other, this may provide the greatestpossible offset between the mode-switching cycles to be performed by themobile devices 100.

Offset Based on Angular Distance to Fixed Heading

In other embodiments, a time offset value may be determined in step1005, based on the angular distance between the orientation of themobile device, and predetermined fixed heading (e.g., magnetic north, orother cardinal direction). Referring now to FIG. 11, an example is shownof a mobile device 100 oriented at an angle of N degrees (e.g., 49degrees) from due north on the compass. In this example, the wirelessprotocol controller 130 may determine the time offset value for themobile device 100, by dividing the angular distance between the deviceorientation and the predetermined fixed heading over 180 degrees (e.g.,49/180). The resulting value may be multiplied by the frequency value todetermine the offset time value. Thus, as with the previous “One-HalfFrequency Offset for Half of Compass” technique, if two mobile devices100 are directly facing each other, then this technique also may providegreatest possible offset between the mode-switching cycles of the mobiledevices 100. However, unlike the previous technique, as the two mobiledevice 100 turn gradually away from direct facing positions, the offsetbetween the mode-switching cycles reduces gradually using thistechnique.

In step 1006, the wireless protocol controller 130 may calculate anoffset start time for the mode switching cycle. In some embodiments,offset start time may be calculated by simply adjusting the cycle starttime determined in step 1003 by the amount of the time offset determinedin step 1005. Thus, when referring to graphs illustrating mode-switchingcycles, such as those shown in FIG. 8, the adjustment of the cycle starttime in step 1006 may have the effect of simply shifting themode-shifting graph left or right by the time offset value determined instep 1005.

In step 1007, the wireless protocol controller 130 may initiate themode-switching cycle on the mobile device 100. In some embodiments, theinitiation of the mode-switching cycle in step 1007 may be similar oridentical to performing steps 901-904 in FIG. 9. For instance, wirelessprotocol controller 130 may initially set the first asymmetriccommunication mode of the wireless protocol (e.g., broadcasting mode orlistening mode), at a time corresponding to the offset cycle start timedetermined in step 1006. Then the wireless protocol controller 130 mayiteratively reconfiguring the mobile device to switching between thebroadcasting mode and the listening mode, at time intervalscorresponding to the frequency value.

VI. Random Modifications to Cycling

As discussed above, when using asymmetric communication modes ofwireless protocols to establish connections and/or transmit data betweenmobile devices 100, possible difficulties or inefficiencies may resultfrom situations when two different mobile devices 100 are operating inthe same asymmetric mode. Such situations of mode incompatibility mayoccur when cycling between modes is not used, as shown in FIGS. 3A and3B. Asymmetric mode incompatibility also may occur when mobile devices100 implement a mode-switching cycle, as shown in FIG. 8 (time 801).Further, when two different mobile devices 100 a and 100 b implementsimilar or identical mode-switching cycles (e.g., similar frequencies,cycle start times and time offsets, etc.), it may be possible for themode-switching cycles of the devices to mirror each other. In suchcases, both mobile devices 100 a and 100 b may switch to broadcastingmode of the wireless protocol at approximately the same time, and thenboth devices 100 a and 100 b may switch back to listening mode atapproximately the same time, and so on. When the mode-switching cyclesof mobile devices 100 closely mirror each other, it may become difficultor impossible to establish wireless connections or transfer data betweenthe devices 100 for an extended period of time. Accordingly, certainembodiments may include random modification of offsets formode-switching cycles, in order to prevent the mode-switching cycles ofdifferent mobile devices 100 from mirroring each other for an extendedperiod.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating a method for performing randommodifications of time offset values during mode-switching cycles,according to embodiments of the present disclosure. In step 1201, thewireless protocol controller 130 of a mobile device 100 may commence amode-switching cycle on the mobile device 100, by initially setting thecontroller to operate in a broadcasting mode of the wireless protocol.Thus, step 1201 may be similar or identical to steps 901-902 describedabove. After remaining in broadcasting mode for a predetermined periodof time in step 1201 (e.g., a predefined time interval N), then in step1202 the wireless protocol controller 130 may be reconfigured in step1202 to operate in a listening mode of the wireless protocol for thesame length of time. In step 1203, the wireless protocol controller 130may determine whether to continue the mode-switching cycle of the mobiledevice 100 without modification (1203:No), or to randomly modify thetime offset of the mode-switching cycle (1203:Yes). In some embodiments,step 1203 may including determining whether the mobile device 100 hassuccessfully begun wireless communications with another mobile device100, and if not, whether a threshold period of time or threshold numberof iterations of mode switches has been reached since the beginning ofthe device's mode-switching cycling. For example, the wireless protocolcontroller 130 of a mobile device 100 may implement a 0.5 secondthreshold, meaning that during a mode-switching cycle, if a successfulwireless connection and/or data transfer has not occurred after 0.5seconds (1203:Yes), then the time offset value for the mode-switchingcycle may be modified in step 1204. As another example, the wirelessprotocol controller 130 of a mobile device 100 may implement a 10 cyclethreshold, meaning that during a mode-switching cycle, if a successfulwireless connection and/or data transfer has not occurred after 100cycles through the broadcasting and listening modes (1203:Yes), then thetime offset value for the mode-switching cycle may be modified in step1204.

In step 1204, the wireless protocol controller 130 may generate a randommodification of the time offset value used for the mode-switching cycle,and the reconfigure the mode-switching cycle running on the mobiledevice 100 based on the modified time offset value. The modified timeoffset value determined in step 1204 may correspond to a randomlygenerated value between zero and the frequency value of themode-switching cycle. Referring briefly to FIG. 13, a graph is shownillustrating a random modification to a mode-switching cycle beingperformed by a mobile device 100. As shown in this example, a mobiledevice 100 is performing a mode-switching cycle between an asymmetricbroadcasting mode and an asymmetric listening mode of the wirelessprotocol. The mode-switching cycle began at time 1301 in this example,and a threshold time (or threshold number of mode-switch iterations) wasreached at time 1302. Accordingly, at time 1302, rather than continuethe mode-switching cycle, a one-time random modification 1303 is appliedto the offset time value for the mode-switching cycle. Following therandom modification to the offset time value at 1303, the wirelessprotocol controller 130 may continue with the mode-switching cycle,during which the wireless protocol controller 130 may continue iteratingbetween broadcasting mode and listening mode cycles in an attempts toestablish a wireless connection and/or data transfer between othermobile device 100.

VII. Hardware Overview

FIG. 14 is a block diagram of an example electronic device 1400. Device1400 generally includes computer-readable medium 1402, a processingsystem 1404, an Input/Output (I/O) subsystem 1406, wireless circuitry1408, and audio circuitry 1410 including speaker 1412 and microphone1414. These components may be coupled by one or more communication busesor signal lines 1403. Device 1400 can be any portable electronic device,including a handheld computer, a tablet computer, a mobile phone, laptopcomputer, tablet device, media player, personal digital assistant (PDA),a key fob, a car key, an access card, a multi-function device, a mobilephone, a portable gaming device, a headset, or the like, including acombination of two or more of these items.

It should be apparent that the architecture shown in FIG. 14 is only oneexample of an architecture for device 1400, and that device 1400 canhave more or fewer components than shown, or a different configurationof components. The various components shown in FIG. 14 can beimplemented in hardware, software, or a combination of both hardware andsoftware, including one or more signal processing and/or applicationspecific integrated circuits.

Wireless circuitry 1408 is used to send and receive information over awireless link or network to one or more other devices' conventionalcircuitry such as an antenna system, an RF transceiver, one or moreamplifiers, a tuner, one or more oscillators, a digital signalprocessor, a CODEC chipset, memory, etc. Wireless circuitry 1408 can usevarious protocols, e.g., as described herein. In various embodiments,wireless circuitry 1408 is capable of establishing and maintainingcommunications with other devices using one or more communicationprotocols, including time division multiple access (TDMA), code divisionmultiple access (CDMA), global system for mobile communications (GSM),Enhanced Data GSM Environment (EDGE), wideband code division multipleaccess (W-CDMA), Long Term Evolution (LTE), LTE-Advanced, WiFi (such asIEEE 802.11a, IEEE 802.11b, IEEE 802.11g and/or IEEE 802.11n),Bluetooth, Wi-MAX, voice over Internet Protocol (VoW), near fieldcommunication protocol (NFC), a protocol for email, instant messaging,and/or a short message service (SMS), or any other suitablecommunication protocol, including communication protocols not yetdeveloped as of the filing date of this document.

Wireless circuitry 1408 is coupled to processing system 1404 viaperipherals interface 1416. Peripherals interface 1416 can includeconventional components for establishing and maintaining communicationbetween peripherals and processing system 1404. Voice and datainformation received by wireless circuitry 1408 (e.g., in speechrecognition or voice command applications) is sent to a processing unithaving one or more processors 1418 via peripherals interface 1416. Oneor more processors 1418 are configurable to process various data formatsfor one or more application programs 1434 stored on medium 1402.

Peripherals interface 1416 couple the input and output peripherals ofdevice 1400 to the one or more processors 1418 and computer-readablemedium 1402. One or more processors 1418 communicate withcomputer-readable medium 1402 via a controller 1420. Computer-readablemedium 1402 can be any device or medium that can store code and/or datafor use by one or more processors 1418. Computer-readable medium 1402can include a memory hierarchy, including cache, main memory andsecondary memory. The memory hierarchy can be implemented using anycombination of RAM (e.g., SRAM, DRAM, DDRAM), ROM, FLASH, magneticand/or optical storage devices, such as disk drives, magnetic tape, CDs(compact disks) and DVDs (digital video discs). In some embodiments,peripherals interface 1416, one or more processors 1418, and controller1420 can be implemented on a single chip, such as processing system1404. In some other embodiments, they can be implemented on separatechips.

Processor(s) 1418 can include hardware and/or software elements thatperform one or more processing functions, such as mathematicaloperations, logical operations, data manipulation operations, datatransfer operations, controlling the reception of user input,controlling output of information to users, or the like. Processor(s)1418 can be embodied as one or more hardware processors,microprocessors, microcontrollers, field programmable gate arrays(FPGAs), application-specified integrated circuits (ASICs), or the like.

Device 1400 also includes a power system 1442 for powering the varioushardware components. Power system 1442 can include a power managementsystem, one or more power sources (e.g., battery, alternating current(AC)), a recharging system, a power failure detection circuit, a powerconverter or inverter, a power status indicator (e.g., a light emittingdiode (LED)) and any other components typically associated with thegeneration, management and distribution of power in mobile devices.

In some embodiments, device 1400 includes a camera 1444. In someembodiments, device 1400 includes sensors 1446. Sensors can includeaccelerometers, compass, gyroscope, pressure sensors, audio sensors,light sensors, barometers, and the like. Sensors 1446 can be used tosense location aspects, such as auditory or light signatures of alocation.

In some embodiments, device 1400 can include a GPS receiver, sometimesreferred to as a GPS unit 1448. A mobile device can use a satellitenavigation system, such as the Global Positioning System (GPS), toobtain position information, timing information, altitude, or othernavigation information. During operation, the GPS unit can receivesignals from GPS satellites orbiting the Earth. The GPS unit analyzesthe signals to make a transit time and distance estimation. The GPS unitcan determine the current position (current location) of the mobiledevice. Based on these estimations, the mobile device can determine alocation fix, altitude, and/or current speed. A location fix can begeographical coordinates such as latitudinal and longitudinalinformation.

One or more processors 1418 run various software components stored inmedium 1402 to perform various functions for device 1400. In someembodiments, the software components include an operating system 1422, acommunication module 1424 (or set of instructions), a location module1426 (or set of instructions), a settings module 1428 that is used aspart of determining settings (e.g., a playback buffer size) describedherein, and other application programs 1434 (or set of instructions).

Operating system 1422 can be any suitable operating system, includingiOS, Mac OS, Darwin, RTXC, LINUX, UNIX, OS X, WINDOWS, or an embeddedoperating system such as VxWorks. The operating system can includevarious procedures, sets of instructions, software components and/ordrivers for controlling and managing general system tasks (e.g., memorymanagement, storage device control, power management, etc.) andfacilitates communication between various hardware and softwarecomponents.

Communication module 1424 facilitates communication with other devicesover one or more external ports 1436 or via wireless circuitry 1408 andincludes various software components for handling data received fromwireless circuitry 1408 and/or external port 1436. External port 1436(e.g., USB, FireWire, Lightning connector, 60-pin connector, etc.) isadapted for coupling directly to other devices or indirectly over anetwork (e.g., the Internet, wireless LAN, etc.).

Location/motion module 1426 can assist in determining the currentposition (e.g., coordinates or other geographic location identifiers)and motion of device 1400. Modern positioning systems include satellitebased positioning systems, such as Global Positioning System (GPS),cellular network positioning based on “cell IDs,” and Wi-Fi positioningtechnology based on a Wi-Fi networks. GPS also relies on the visibilityof multiple satellites to determine a position estimate, which may notbe visible (or have weak signals) indoors or in “urban canyons.” In someembodiments, location/motion module 1426 receives data from GPS unit1448 and analyzes the signals to determine the current position of themobile device. In some embodiments, location/motion module 1426 candetermine a current location using Wi-Fi or cellular locationtechnology. For example, the location of the mobile device can beestimated using knowledge of nearby cell sites and/or Wi-Fi accesspoints with knowledge also of their locations. Information identifyingthe Wi-Fi or cellular transmitter is received at wireless circuitry 1408and is passed to location/motion module 1426. In some embodiments, thelocation module receives the one or more transmitter IDs. In someembodiments, a sequence of transmitter IDs can be compared with areference database (e.g., Cell ID database, Wi-Fi reference database)that maps or correlates the transmitter IDs to position coordinates ofcorresponding transmitters, and computes estimated position coordinatesfor device 1400 based on the position coordinates of the correspondingtransmitters. Regardless of the specific location technology used,location/motion module 1426 receives information from which a locationfix can be derived, interprets that information, and returns locationinformation, such as geographic coordinates, latitude/longitude, orother location fix data

A settings module 1428 can determine settings of mobile device 1400and/or of other devices (e.g., a playback device) in communication withdevice 1400. For example, settings module 1428 can determine a buffersize of a playback (jitter) buffer of a playback device. Settings module1428 can make the determination based on information obtained from othercomponents of device 1400, e.g., from wireless circuitry 1408, which maycorrespond to a wireless interface. Settings module 1428 can communicatewith various application programs 1434, e.g., ones that providestreaming content. For example, settings module 1428 can cause a changein a rate that streamlining content is provide from an application. Insome embodiments, settings module 1428 can also include a timing moduleor cause a timing module to provide a sped up or slowed down clocksignal to a streaming application.

The one or more applications 1434 on device 1400 can include anyapplications installed on the device 1400, including without limitation,a browser, address book, contact list, email, instant messaging, socialnetworking, word processing, keyboard emulation, widgets, JAVA-enabledapplications, encryption, digital rights management, voice recognition,voice replication, a music player (which plays back recorded musicstored in one or more files, such as MP3 or AAC files), etc.

There may be other modules or sets of instructions (not shown), such asa graphics module, a time module, etc. For example, the graphics modulecan include various conventional software components for rendering,animating and displaying graphical objects (including without limitationtext, web pages, icons, digital images, animations and the like) on adisplay surface. In another example, a timer module can be a softwaretimer. The timer module can also be implemented in hardware. The timemodule can maintain various timers for any number of events.

I/O subsystem 1406 can be coupled to a display system (not shown), whichcan be a touch-sensitive display. The display displays visual output tothe user in a GUI. The visual output can include text, graphics, video,and any combination thereof. Some or all of the visual output cancorrespond to user-interface objects. A display can use LED (lightemitting diode), LCD (liquid crystal display) technology, or LPD (lightemitting polymer display) technology, although other displaytechnologies can be used in other embodiments.

In some embodiments, I/O subsystem 1406 can include a display and userinput devices such as a keyboard, mouse, and/or trackpad. In someembodiments, I/O subsystem 1406 can include a touch-sensitive display. Atouch-sensitive display can also accept input from the user based atleast part on haptic and/or tactile contact. In some embodiments, atouch-sensitive display forms a touch-sensitive surface that acceptsuser input. The touch-sensitive display/surface (along with anyassociated modules and/or sets of instructions in computer-readablemedium 1402) detects contact (and any movement or release of thecontact) on the touch-sensitive display and converts the detectedcontact into interaction with user-interface objects, such as one ormore soft keys, that are displayed on the touch screen when the contactoccurs. In some embodiments, a point of contact between thetouch-sensitive display and the user corresponds to one or more digitsof the user. The user can make contact with the touch-sensitive displayusing any suitable object or appendage, such as a stylus, pen, finger,and so forth. A touch-sensitive display surface can detect contact andany movement or release thereof using any suitable touch sensitivitytechnologies, including capacitive, resistive, infrared, and surfaceacoustic wave technologies, as well as other proximity sensor arrays orother elements for determining one or more points of contact with thetouch-sensitive display.

Further, I/O subsystem 1406 can be coupled to one or more other physicalcontrol devices (not shown), such as pushbuttons, keys, switches, rockerbuttons, dials, slider switches, sticks, LEDs, etc., for controlling orperforming various functions, such as power control, speaker volumecontrol, ring tone loudness, keyboard input, scrolling, hold, menu,screen lock, clearing and ending communications and the like. In someembodiments, in addition to the touch screen, device 1400 can include atouchpad (not shown) for activating or deactivating particularfunctions. In some embodiments, the touchpad is a touch-sensitive areaof the device that, unlike the touch screen, does not display visualoutput. The touchpad can be a touch-sensitive surface that is separatefrom the touch-sensitive display or an extension of the touch-sensitivesurface formed by the touch-sensitive display.

In some embodiments, some or all of the operations described herein canbe performed using an application executing on the user's device.Circuits, logic modules, processors, and/or other components may beconfigured to perform various operations described herein. Those skilledin the art will appreciate that, depending on implementation, suchconfiguration can be accomplished through design, setup,interconnection, and/or programming of the particular components andthat, again depending on implementation, a configured component might ormight not be reconfigurable for a different operation. For example, aprogrammable processor can be configured by providing suitableexecutable code; a dedicated logic circuit can be configured by suitablyconnecting logic gates and other circuit elements; and so on.

Any of the software components or functions described in thisapplication may be implemented as software code to be executed by aprocessor using any suitable computer language such as, for example,Java, C, C++, C#, Objective-C, Swift, or scripting language such as Perlor Python using, for example, conventional or object-orientedtechniques. The software code may be stored as a series of instructionsor commands on a computer readable medium for storage and/ortransmission. A suitable non-transitory computer readable medium caninclude random access memory (RAM), a read only memory (ROM), a magneticmedium such as a hard-drive or a floppy disk, or an optical medium, suchas a compact disk (CD) or DVD (digital versatile disk), flash memory,and the like. The computer readable medium may be any combination ofsuch storage or transmission devices.

Computer programs incorporating various features of the presentdisclosure may be encoded on various computer readable storage media;suitable media include magnetic disk or tape, optical storage media,such as compact disk (CD) or DVD (digital versatile disk), flash memory,and the like. Computer readable storage media encoded with the programcode may be packaged with a compatible device or provided separatelyfrom other devices. In addition, program code may be encoded andtransmitted via wired optical, and/or wireless networks conforming to avariety of protocols, including the Internet, thereby allowingdistribution, e.g., via Internet download. Any such computer readablemedium may reside on or within a single computer product (e.g. a solidstate drive, a hard drive, a CD, or an entire computer system), and maybe present on or within different computer products within a system ornetwork. A computer system may include a monitor, printer, or othersuitable display for providing any of the results mentioned herein to auser.

A recitation of “a”, “an” or “the” is intended to mean “one or more”unless specifically indicated to the contrary. The use of “or” isintended to mean an “inclusive or,” and not an “exclusive or” unlessspecifically indicated to the contrary. Reference to a “first” componentdoes not necessarily require that a second component be provided.Moreover reference to a “first” or a “second” component does not limitthe referenced component to a particular location unless expresslystated. The term “based on” is intended to mean “based at least in parton.”

All patents, patent applications, publications, and descriptionsmentioned herein are incorporated by reference in their entirety for allpurposes. None is admitted to be prior art

Further, as described above, one aspect of the present technology is thegathering and use of data available from various sources to improveestablishing wireless communications between mobile devices usingwireless protocols. The present disclosure contemplates that in someinstances, this gathered data may include personal information data thatuniquely identifies or can be used to contact or locate a specificperson. Such personal information data can include demographic data,location-based data, telephone numbers, email addresses, twitter ID's,home addresses, data or records relating to a user's health or level offitness (e.g., vital signs measurements, medication information,exercise information), date of birth, or any other identifying orpersonal information.

The present disclosure recognizes that the use of such personalinformation data, in the present technology, can be used to the benefitof users. For example, the personal information data such as devicelocations and orientations may be used to establish wirelesscommunications for wireless data transfers. Accordingly, use of suchpersonal information data enables users to more efficiently connectdevices and share data. Further, other uses for personal informationdata that benefit the user are also contemplated by the presentdisclosure. For instance, health and fitness data may be used to provideinsights into a user's general wellness, or may be used as positivefeedback to individuals using technology to pursue wellness goals.

The present disclosure contemplates that the entities responsible forthe collection, analysis, disclosure, transfer, storage, or other use ofsuch personal information data will comply with well-established privacypolicies and/or privacy practices. In particular, such entities shouldimplement and consistently use privacy policies and practices that aregenerally recognized as meeting or exceeding industry or governmentalrequirements for maintaining personal information data private andsecure. Such policies should be easily accessible by users, and shouldbe updated as the collection and/or use of data changes. Personalinformation from users should be collected for legitimate and reasonableuses of the entity and not shared or sold outside of those legitimateuses. Further, such collection/sharing should occur after receiving theinformed consent of the users. Additionally, such entities shouldconsider taking any needed steps for safeguarding and securing access tosuch personal information data and ensuring that others with access tothe personal information data adhere to their privacy policies andprocedures. Further, such entities can subject themselves to evaluationby third parties to certify their adherence to widely accepted privacypolicies and practices. In addition, policies and practices should beadapted for the particular types of personal information data beingcollected and/or accessed and adapted to applicable laws and standards,including jurisdiction-specific considerations. For instance, in the US,collection of or access to certain health data may be governed byfederal and/or state laws, such as the Health Insurance Portability andAccountability Act (HIPAA); whereas health data in other countries maybe subject to other regulations and policies and should be handledaccordingly. Hence different privacy practices should be maintained fordifferent personal data types in each country

Despite the foregoing, the present disclosure also contemplatesembodiments in which users selectively block the use of, or access to,personal information data. That is, the present disclosure contemplatesthat hardware and/or software elements can be provided to prevent orblock access to such personal information data. For example, in the caseof establishing wireless communications based on mobile deviceorientation, the present technology can be configured to allow users toselect to “opt in” or “opt out” of participation in the collection ofpersonal information data during registration for services or anytimethereafter. In another example, users may select not to provide datacorresponding to their mobile device locations or orientations, orprevious interactions with various applications, along with theirsharing preferences and/or historical user interactions. In yet anotherexample, users can select to limit the length of time that mobile devicelocations and orientations, previous application interactions andsharing data is maintained or entirely prohibit the collection andtracking of such data. In addition to providing “opt in” and “opt out”options, the present disclosure contemplates providing notificationsrelating to the access or use of personal information. For instance, auser may be notified upon downloading an app that their personalinformation data will be accessed and then reminded again just beforepersonal information data is accessed by the app.

Moreover, it is the intent of the present disclosure that personalinformation data should be managed and handled in a way to minimizerisks of unintentional or unauthorized access or use. Risk can beminimized by limiting the collection of data and deleting data once itis no longer needed. In addition, and when applicable, including incertain health related applications, data de-identification can be usedto protect a user's privacy. De-identification may be facilitated, whenappropriate, by removing specific identifiers (e.g., date of birth,etc.), controlling the amount or specificity of data stored (e.g.,collecting location data a city level rather than at an address level),controlling how data is stored (e.g., aggregating data across users),and/or other methods.

Therefore, although the present disclosure broadly covers use ofpersonal information data to implement one or more various disclosedembodiments, the present disclosure also contemplates that the variousembodiments can also be implemented without the need for accessing suchpersonal information data. That is, the various embodiments of thepresent technology are not rendered inoperable due to the lack of all ora portion of such personal information data. For example, wirelesscommunications may be established between mobile devices based onnon-personal information data or a bare minimum amount of personalinformation, or publicly available information.

1. A method of communicating between mobile devices using a wirelessprotocol in asymmetric mode, the method comprising performing, by amobile device: receiving a request to initiate wireless communicationsusing a wireless protocol, wherein the wireless protocol supports atleast two asymmetric communication modes, wherein one asymmetriccommunication mode of the at least two asymmetric communication modes isa broadcasting mode and another asymmetric communication mode of the atleast two asymmetric communication modes is a listening mode;determining an orientation of the mobile device; selecting a firstasymmetric communication mode of the at least two asymmetriccommunication modes of the wireless protocol, based on the determinedorientation of the mobile device, wherein the selected first asymmetriccommunication mode corresponds to either the broadcasting mode or thelistening mode; and configuring the mobile device to operate in theselected first asymmetric communication mode of the at least twoasymmetric communication modes of the wireless protocol.
 2. The methodof claim 1, wherein determining the orientation of the mobile devicecomprises receiving one or more orientation readings from a compass ofthe mobile device.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein selecting the firstasymmetric communication mode of the wireless protocol comprises:comparing the determined orientation of the mobile device to anorientation range of 180 degrees; and determining whether the firstasymmetric communication mode corresponds to the broadcasting mode orthe listening mode, based on whether the mobile device is orientedwithin the orientation range of 180 degrees.
 4. The method of claim 1,further comprising: after configuring the mobile device to operate inthe selected first asymmetric communication mode of the wirelessprotocol, performing a mode-switching cycle on the mobile device,wherein performing the mode-switching cycle comprises iterativelyreconfiguring the mobile device between operating in the broadcastingmode and the listening mode of the wireless protocol.
 5. The method ofclaim 4, wherein performing the mode-switching cycle on the mobiledevice comprises: determining a frequency value corresponding to alength of time between each mode switch in the mode-switching cycle;determining a cycle start time value for the mode-switching cycle;determining a time offset value for the mode-switching cycle based onthe determined orientation of the mobile device, wherein the time offsetvalue corresponds to a value between zero and the length of time of thefrequency value; calculating an offset cycle start time value based onthe cycle start time value and the time offset value; at a timecorresponding to the offset cycle start time value, configuring themobile device to operate in the selected first asymmetric communicationmode of the wireless protocol; and iteratively reconfiguring the mobiledevice between operating in the broadcasting mode and the listening modeof the wireless protocol, at time intervals corresponding to thefrequency value.
 6. The method of claim 5, wherein determining the timeoffset value for the mode-switching cycle based on the orientation ofthe mobile device comprises: determining an angular distance between theorientation of the mobile device and a predetermined fixed heading; andcalculating the time offset value based on the angular distance betweenthe orientation of the mobile device and a predetermined fixed heading.7. The method of claim 5, wherein performing the mode-switching cycle onthe mobile device further comprises: determining that the mobile devicehas not established a connection with a second mobile device via thewireless protocol, within at least one of a threshold period of time orwithin a threshold number of iterations; and in response to saiddetermination, modifying the offset cycle start time value, andcontinuing the mode-switching cycle using the modified offset cyclestart time value.
 8. A computing device, comprising: a processing unitcomprising one or more processors; memory coupled with and readable bythe processing unit and storing therein a set of instructions which,when executed by the processing unit, causes the computing device to:receive a request to initiate wireless communications using a wirelessprotocol, wherein the wireless protocol supports at least two asymmetriccommunication modes, wherein one asymmetric communication mode of the atleast two asymmetric communication modes is a broadcasting mode andanother asymmetric communication mode of the at least two asymmetriccommunication modes is a listening mode; determine an orientation of thecomputing device; select a first asymmetric communication mode of the atleast two asymmetric communication modes of the wireless protocol, basedon the determined orientation of the computing device, wherein theselected first asymmetric communication mode corresponds to either thebroadcasting mode or the listening mode; and configure the computingdevice to operate in the selected first asymmetric communication mode ofthe at least two asymmetric communication modes of the wirelessprotocol.
 9. The computing device of claim 8, wherein determining theorientation of the computing device comprises receiving one or moreorientation readings from a compass of the computing device.
 10. Thecomputing device of claim 8, wherein selecting the first asymmetriccommunication mode of the wireless protocol comprises: comparing thedetermined orientation of the computing device to an orientation rangeof 180 degrees; and determining whether the first asymmetriccommunication mode corresponds to the broadcasting mode or the listeningmode, based on whether the computing device is oriented within theorientation range of 180 degrees.
 11. The computing device of claim 8,the memory storing therein additional instructions which, when executedby the processing unit, causes the computing device: after configuringthe computing device to operate in the selected first asymmetriccommunication mode of the wireless protocol, perform a mode-switchingcycle on the computing device, wherein performing the mode-switchingcycle comprises iteratively reconfiguring the computing device betweenoperating in the broadcasting mode and the listening mode of thewireless protocol.
 12. The computing device of claim 11, whereinperforming the mode-switching cycle on the computing device comprises:determining a frequency value corresponding to a length of time betweeneach mode switch in the mode-switching cycle; determining a cycle starttime value for the mode-switching cycle; determining a time offset valuefor the mode-switching cycle based on the determined orientation of thecomputing device, wherein the time offset value corresponds to a valuebetween zero and the length of time of the frequency value; calculatingan offset cycle start time value based on the cycle start time value andthe time offset value; at a time corresponding to the offset cycle starttime value, configuring the computing device to operate in the selectedfirst asymmetric communication mode of the wireless protocol; anditeratively reconfiguring the computing device between operating in thebroadcasting mode and the listening mode of the wireless protocol, attime intervals corresponding to the frequency value.
 13. The computingdevice of claim 12, wherein determining the time offset value for themode-switching cycle based on the orientation of the computing devicecomprises: determining an angular distance between the orientation ofthe computing device and a predetermined fixed heading; and calculatingthe time offset value based on the angular distance between theorientation of the computing device and a predetermined fixed heading.14. The computing device of claim 12, wherein performing themode-switching cycle on the computing device further comprises:determining that the computing device has not established a connectionwith a second computing device via the wireless protocol, within atleast one of a threshold period of time or within a threshold number ofiterations; and in response to said determination, modifying the offsetcycle start time value, and continuing the mode-switching cycle usingthe modified offset cycle start time value.
 15. A non-transitorycomputer-readable storage medium storing computer-executableinstructions that, when executed by one or more processors of acomputing device, cause the one or more processors to: receive a requestto initiate wireless communications using a wireless protocol, whereinthe wireless protocol supports at least two asymmetric communicationmodes, wherein one asymmetric communication mode of the at least twoasymmetric communication modes is a broadcasting mode and anotherasymmetric communication mode of the at least two asymmetriccommunication modes is a listening mode; determine an orientation of thecomputing device; select a first asymmetric communication mode of the atleast two asymmetric communication modes of the wireless protocol, basedon the determined orientation of the computing device, wherein theselected first asymmetric communication mode corresponds to either thebroadcasting mode or the listening mode; and configure the computingdevice to operate in the selected first asymmetric communication mode ofthe at least two asymmetric communication modes of the wirelessprotocol.
 16. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 15, whereindetermining the orientation of the computing device comprises receivingone or more orientation readings from a compass of the computing device.17. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein selectingthe first asymmetric communication mode of the wireless protocolcomprises: comparing the determined orientation of the computing deviceto an orientation range of 180 degrees; and determining whether thefirst asymmetric communication mode corresponds to the broadcasting modeor the listening mode, based on whether the computing device is orientedwithin the orientation range of 180 degrees.
 18. The computer-readablestorage medium of claim 15, the computer-executable instructions furthercausing the computing device: after configuring the computing device tooperate in the selected first asymmetric communication mode of thewireless protocol, perform a mode-switching cycle on the computingdevice, wherein performing the mode-switching cycle comprisesiteratively reconfiguring the computing device between operating in thebroadcasting mode and the listening mode of the wireless protocol. 19.The computer-readable storage medium of claim 18, wherein performing themode-switching cycle on the computing device comprises: determining afrequency value corresponding to a length of time between each modeswitch in the mode-switching cycle; determining a cycle start time valuefor the mode-switching cycle; determining a time offset value for themode-switching cycle based on the determined orientation of thecomputing device, wherein the time offset value corresponds to a valuebetween zero and the length of time of the frequency value; calculatingan offset cycle start time value based on the cycle start time value andthe time offset value; at a time corresponding to the offset cycle starttime value, configuring the computing device to operate in thedetermined first asymmetric communication mode of the wireless protocol;and iteratively reconfiguring the computing device between operating inthe broadcasting mode and the listening mode of the wireless protocol,at time intervals corresponding to the frequency value.
 20. Thecomputer-readable storage medium of claim 19, wherein determining thetime offset value for the mode-switching cycle based on the orientationof the computing device comprises: determining an angular distancebetween the orientation of the computing device and a predeterminedfixed heading; and calculating the time offset value based on theangular distance between the orientation of the computing device and apredetermined fixed heading.